Click here to view photos of the Dowling visit to MOMI
Media Contact: Lee Nakasone
Montessori School of Maui
Tel: (808) 573-0374
E-mail: leen@momi.org
Dowling Awards Montessori School of Maui
$50,000 “Green” Grant
Makawao, Maui, Hawai`i (March 21, 2006) – The Dowling Community Improvement Foundation has given a $50,000 grant to the Montessori School of Maui (MOMI) to support the school’s multi-million dollar sustainable campus expansion plan. The gift will be used to fund LEED certification efforts as part of the expansion plan.
LEED—Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design—is a rating standard for building performance and sustainability established by the U.S. Green Building Council. MOMI developed its expansion guidelines based on the LEED model, while integrating Montessori principles and curriculum.
“We are incredibly grateful to the Dowling Community Improvement Foundation for this generous gift which will help us to realize our goal of creating a ‘green campus,’” said Cynthia Winans-Burns, head of MOMI. The school will use the grant to hire a LEED consultant to oversee the commissioning and certification process.
MOMI embarked on the sustainable expansion plan in 2003 to accommodate the growing number of students on its waiting list. The National Association of Independent Schools recently recognized MOMI as one of 12 “Leading Edge” schools in the nation in the “environmental sustainability” program category.
“We congratulate Montessori School for its vision in pursuing LEED and green building,” said Everett Dowling, president of Dowling Company. “We are proud to support efforts which help teach kids the importance of protecting the environment beginning at an early age.”
The Dowling Community Improvement Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Dowling Company, Inc., a Maui-based development company. Over the past five years, the foundation has given in excess of $3 million in cash and in-kind donations to more than 50 organizations supporting education, Hawaiian culture, and environmental preservation on Maui.
The Montessori School of Maui was established in 1978, using the principles, spirit and philosophy of Maria Montessori’s method of education. For more information about the school and its guidelines of sustainability call (808)-573-0374
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